1. Field of the Invention
This invention pertains to recompacting methods and in particular to techniques in which the strap guiding can accommodate over-compression and thus partial retraction of the recompacting platen.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Heretofore various attempts have been made to recompact field-baled fibrous hay, such as timothy, alfalfa, wheat straw and the like. The purpose of this recompacting is to reduce the volume or size of the bale from the approximately four-foot length and relatively loose compaction to approximately twenty-two inch length of high density compaction which could weigh in the vicinity of eighty-five to one-hundred ten pounds depending on the moisture content and type of hay being compacted. One of the difficulties in prior art recompacting devices for field bales is that the normal grasses or hays are extremely resilient such that if allowed to remain in a totally compressed state, the bales can snap the normal strap or wire banding materials when undergoing handling. Secondly, it is difficult to adequately strap a recompacted bale because existing equipment does not allow for movement of the strap guiding means sufficiently to accommodate the over-compression and retraction cycle necessary to allow the recompacted hay to lose some of its internal expansion stresses.